Camping Trip
by MzFreak
Summary: The clan goes camping... well, er... sort of. PDLD?
1. Camping?

**Camping Trip – Chapter One**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gilmore Girls.**_

She frowned in disappointment as she looked around at her surroundings. She stopped and let the other's pass… she set her heavy shoulder bag down onto the dirt and let out a frustrated shriek. The others stopped also and turned their body's to face the brunette.

The blonde young man stepped toward her, wrapping a comforting arm over her drooped shoulder. "Relax Ace," he cooed gently in her ear.

Rory Gilmore looked into the eyes of the blond playboy and glared. "You said it would be fun… you said I was going to have a good time."

He laughed silently, "And you will," he grinned boyishly.

"We're in the wilderness," she observed, sighing at the numerous trees hovering over the group. She noticed that his friends, who were paces ahead of them, had stopped.

"So we are," he mimicked her by looking around at their surroundings.

"What are we doing here?" she asked him this question over and over again as she let him guide her back to where the three sat.

"We're being adventurous," Logan joined his friends and sat down on the sprawled picnic blanket.

Rory leaned against a tall tree and watched the four friends. Each sat cross-legged on the red chequered blanket, her eyebrows rose as one reached into one of the many backpacks for a bottle of red wine. Her mouth was agape as he poured the alcoholic drink into all of their expecting wine glasses. They all acted as if _this _was normal. _Which totally is **not**, _her mind screamed. Logan Huntzberger, Colin Worthington, Finn Morgan and Stephanie Millar were not the type of people to go off frolicking in the woods to have fun. Their idea of fun would be a resort in the Bahamas… or in Fiji… or their own little island off the coast of Jamaica… or _anything _else as extravagant. Not camping… certainly not camping.

"Earth to Ace…"

Rory snapped out of her delusional thoughts, "Yes?"

"Do you want some or not?" the Australian smirked, holding up the bottle of merlot.

Rory declined.

Finn shrugged, "Suit yourself. More for us!"

She continued to lean against the tree, drowning in her sorrows. She hated camping… she hated the wilderness… hell, she hated nature in general. _So what am I doing here? _Her mind screamed questioningly.

Her blue eyes looked down at the dirt and she kicked a rough patch roughly. She watched, in disdain as the dirt covered her shoe.

"Can you four explain just one thing for me?"

"Sure," Colin quipped, finishing off his wine.

"Why _me_? I was perfectly content in my dorm room reading my book. And then you four kidnap me and bring me _here_."

"Kidnap you?" Logan questioned, his eyes dancing with mirth.

"Yes, you brought me here against my own will."

"As I recall Ace, you got in the car willingly. No one forced you to go."

"Okay so you guys didn't kidnap me… but you certainly lured me into going in that car."

"How?" Stephanie chuckled at the brunette's actions.

"You," Rory pointed to Logan "Knew my weakness. And you told these three and… and… you knew I wouldn't be able to resist _four _Venti sized coffees!"

"My idea," Finn waved his hand into the air, dancing gleefully.

Rory glared at the tall Australian. "If it weren't for your accent, you would be classified as evil in my books."

"Yes love, the accent is the sole reason that I am still with all of you today."

"He's not joking," Stephanie replied, patting Finn on his back. "The Australian accent's gotten him out of _extremely _sticky situations."

Rory laughed as Finn, Colin and Logan adamantly nodded, agreeing with the blonde's comment.

"Alright!" Finn clapped his hands happily, "Now that _that_ matter is settled, let us all pack up and continue this adventurous trek through this vast area of beautiful land!"

"He's drunk," Logan whispered, his hand found Rory's waist.

"I noticed," Rory whispered back, amused by Finn's antics.

The Australian was now gaily skipping past the group, ducking under low tree trunks and expertly dodging trees from left to right.

Logan's hand still rested on Rory's waist as they watched the three walk far ahead of them. He grinned at her and took her shoulder bag and tossed it over his own. Rory grinned graciously as they continued to walk at a slow pace.

"So Huntzberger… _camping_?" her voice broke his train of thought.

He laughed at her question, "Yes, camping."

"Why camping?"

Logan shrugged, "It was Finn and Colin's idea. Apparently, they never went camping as kids and they wanted to experience everything there is to experience."

"And Stephanie… how did you get her to go along with this?"

"Easy… what coffee if to you is like what Steph's credit cards mean to her."

"I'm not following."

"Let's just say that Colin confiscated all of her credit cards and are now safely resting with his unmentionables."

"So that's _why_ he's been walking funny… I just thought he was tired."

-

"And we're here!" Finn gleefully announced, setting his bags down.

Colin joined his friend's over jubilant antics and he too set his heavy bags down.

Stephanie rested beside Finn, blatantly ignoring Colin and waiting for the other two to arrive.

Logan and Rory arrived shortly after the three. Logan joined his friends and Rory stood in awe. She found herself standing in front of a reasonable sized cabin… _well_, she thought, _reasonable for those four_. This cabin far surpassed the size of her house in Stars Hollow. She shook her head, biting back a grin as she continued to explore the place with her sapphire eyes. _I should have expected this…_

"Well love, are you comin'?"

Rory's eyes found the entrance of the beautiful cabin and noticed three of the four had gone inside. The only one left was Finn Morgan. Rolling his eyes at her not having answered his question, he jogged to where she stood and casually draped his arm over her shoulder.

"Honestly sweetheart, what did you expect? Tents? Sleeping Bags?"

Rory nodded sheepishly.

Finn let out a snort, "You haven't seen anything yet. Let's step inside, shall we?"

She nodded once more, noticing that his arm still was wrapped around her shoulder.

--

_**AN: **Erm… how was it? Good? Bad? Extremely pitiful? _

_Yes, this is a new story from yours truly. I don't know how long it will be… so many ideas are still swirling in my mind with this one._

_Right now, I'm meaning for this story to be PDLD (Finn/Rory)… but that can all change depending on how I want this story to go. Who knows, I can bring in an unexpected, but beloved Bible Boy into the mix… oooh so many tasty pairings… but alas, only **one **will prevail!_

_Please review… I'd love to hear your thoughts. _


	2. Pillow Talk

**Camping Trip – Chapter Two**

_**Disclaimer: I do not own the Gilmore Girls. **_

Rory followed Finn's lead and entered the cabin eager to see the inside. She stopped in the living room and examined the room carefully. She was in absolute awe. The living room was almost twice the size of her living room in Stars Hollow, and at the corner was a huge brick stone fireplace.

"Make yourself at home doll," Finn whispered in her right ear before making his way past her and into the kitchen.

Rory shivered involuntarily and sat on one of the couches. She reached into her purse for her cell phone... she took one last look around the spacious living room before she dialled the beloved number.

"Well hello, darling daughter of mine."

"Hey mom."

"Guess what!"

"You finally caved and said yes to Kirk?"

"How did you know? Unfortunately, I was too late. Damn Lulu."

"I guess you'll just have to settle for Luke," Rory remarked,she was now sprawled on the couch comfortably.

"Well, I don't really have a choice. Anyway, what's up with you?"

"You'll never guess where I am."

"Umm... Montana?"

"Montana?"

"Was I right?"

"No. Guess again."

"You said I couldn't guess where you are so just tell me. I'm dying from the sheer anticipation."

"Okay mom, brace yourself."

Lorelai shrieked excitedly, "This is going to be good! I can feel it."

"Have you braced yourself?"

"Yes, yes and yes."

"I'm camping."

"You're _what?_"

"Camping."

"_Camping_?"

"Yes... well not _really _camping. We're staying in this beautiful cabin but we're surrounded with all kinds of trees and _stuff_."

"But why?"

"Why the trees or why the cabin?"

"Both."

"The cabin because I went with a bunch of rich socialites. The trees... well because these rich socialites wanted to be _adventurous_."

"Well it certainly is adventurous," Lorelai snorted. "I hope they brought coffee."

"They'd be stupid not to," Rory replied.

"Because... well because too much fresh air is hazardous to a Gilmore girl. The only cure is caffeine and lots of it."

"Thanks for the warning."

"Have I told you about my camping experience?"

"_You _have a camping experience?" Rory question incredulously. "Why didn't you tell me before?"

"There was never a right moment was there? When have we been camping?"

"Valid point... continue."

"Well I don't want to go into detail or else I'm going to have nightmares tonight. To make a very long and traumatizing story short, I had mosquito bites the size of pennies, no coffee for _two _days and bags under my eyes from lack of sleep because I swear I saw a bear lurking outside."

Rory laughed, "When was this?"

"When I was fourteen, my first and _last _summer at Lake Kinokee," Lorelai shuddered at the memories flooding her mind.

Rory could hear arguing from the kitchen and took it as a sign to get off the phone. "Listen mom, I have to go... I'll call you soon."

"You better! I want details... and I mean, every single itty bitty detail."

"I promise."

"Bye kiddo."

"Bye mom, love you."

"Right back at'cha."

-

Rory put her cell phone back into her purse. She sighed, resting her head against the feather throw pillow one last time before getting to her feet. She followed the escalating quarrel and reached the equally impressive kitchen. From the entrance, she could see Colin and Stephanie arguing from opposite sides of the kitchen island. Logan stood behind them, he was leaning against the kitchen counter and his face wore a smirk, while his eyebrow rose higher and higher from sheer amusement. Finn was the closest to her; he was a couple of feet away beside the refrigerator.

"What's going on?" she asked him, standing beside him.

Finn grinned at her, "Colin's pissed at Steph."

"For...?"

Finn shushed her and pointed to the bickering two.

"You expect us to eat _this_?" Colin exclaimed, pointing to the plastic bags.

"Why not?" Stephanie countered, her face pink from frustration.

"This is... this is _crap_!"

"Oh get your ego-infested head out of your ass for one second Colin! There's nothing wrong with the food I bought."

"There's nothing _wrong _with the food... it's just all crap."

"Yes well, tough. Eat it or starve Worthington," Stephanie remarked, folding her arms across her chest.

Colin took one look at the plastic bags and scrunched his nose in utter revulsion. "I'd like to see you eat it first Steph."

"Well of course I'll eat it," the blonde yelled, "I bought it didn't I?"

"We gave you _one _simple task and you couldn't even do that!" Colin yelled back, throwing his hands up in the air for effect.

"Have fun starving," Stephanie replied, casually emptying the contents of the plastic bag, "And for the record, you have no reason to be so mad at me. I did my best under the circumstances."

"Your best? And what circumstances?" Colin snorted; he grabbed two cans from inside the plastic bags.

Rory held her laughter in as she noticed that in one hand, Colin held a can of chickpeas and in the other was a can of pork and beans.

Stephanie stopped unpacking the groceries and glared menacingly at Colin. She threw a bag of regular salted chips at his head. "If you hadn't taken away my credit cards then we wouldn't be arguing about this!"

Colin caught the bag of chips and threw them aside. "So you're trying to get back at me?" he exclaimed loudly, "You want your credit cards?" he questioned.

To Stephanie's horror, Colin started to undo his belt. After his belt was undone, he then proceeded to unbutton his pants and unzip the zipper. He pushed his pants down and was now standing in only his Ralph Lauren boxers. Colin's hands fiddled with the hem of his boxers.

"Come and get your credit cards Steph-y. Just reach in."

Rory's eyes widened in shock while she struggled to support a hyperventilating Finn. Finn was laughing so hard that tears were streaming down his face.

Logan was the first to recover from his shock and first to control his laughter. "Okay you two, quit it alright? Colin give Stephanie back her credit cards and put on your pants. Stephanie, put down that can of mushrooms and step away from the kitchen knives. Finn, get a hold of yourself and help me out here!"

Finn cleared his throat and hastily wiped the tears from his eyes. He walked to where Stephanie stood and grabbed a can of pork and beans. He examined it carefully before setting it aside. "I'm sorry doll, you know you're my second favourite girl but..." he looked at Stephanie regretfully, "I want filet mignon and a baked potato."

"Then you can starve too," Stephanie said, "How about you Rory?"

Rory smiled uncomfortably, "Um... I have no problems with the... uh... food."

Stephanie beamed.

"That's three to one."

"But only you and Finn don't like my food."

"Correction, me, Finn and Logan."

"Logan has yet to pick a side," Stephanie argued.

"Whatever we pick, Logan picks," Colin dismissed Stephanie's comment.

Colin then turned to Logan; an expectant smile graced his features. "Hand over the keys Huntzberger."

Logan's eyes widened, his hands held the keys to his new Cadillac even tighter. "Why?"

"We're going food shopping, nitwit."

Logan shook his head, "No, I'm not letting you drive my brand new car Worthington."

"Why the hell not?"

"Remember what happened last time when I let you drive my Porsche?"

Colin rolled his eyes, "It was one tiny dent."

"My poor baby was wrecked. _Wrecked_!"

"Don't be such a prude Huntz. Give me your keys, I'm starving," Colin held out his hand.

"No, I'll drive," Logan announced.

"I'm coming!" Stephanie grabbed her purse.

"Well then I have no choice but to go now, Steph might buy more crap."

Logan ignored the two as another argument ensued. He glanced at Rory expectantly. "You coming Ace?"

"I don't think so," Rory laughed, "I might get a headache from their constant bickering," she pointed to Colin and Stephanie.

"Morgan?" Logan turned to Finn next.

"I think I'll pass mate," he replied, "Somebody has to stay here to keep reporter girl from hitting the books."

-

Rory and Finn watched the three disappear into the trees toward the parking lot from the porch before making there way back inside. Rory could not hide the apprehension from her face... she had never spent time alone with Finn before. Finn seemed to notice and inwardly smirked.

"Nervous?"

Rory jumped as his hot breath tickled the back of her neck. "Why would I be nervous?" she asked him.

"You tell me," he grinned teasingly before taking her hand in his.

"Where are you taking me?" Rory asked, allowing herself to be pulled away by the Australian.

"You'll see," Finn chuckled at her nervous face. "Relax doll, it's nothing _bad_."

With another roll of her blue eyes, she found herself following Finn, actually anxious to see what he had under his sleeve. They made their way past the kitchen and the two now stood in front of the sliding door, leading to the backyard. Rory looked at him questioningly. He only grinned wider and motioned outside. Rory's head turned from the tall Australian to the large backyard. She stifled a giggle as her eyes landed on what Finn signalled to.

"Colin helped me set it up before his hissy fit," he said, sliding the door open. "Ladies first."

Rory laughed as she stepped outside, the humid weather hitting her full force. She allowed him to take her hand as he led her to the middle of the yard.

"How long did it take you guys to actually set this up?"

Finn smiled sheepishly, "That's not important, what _is_ important is that we got it up," he crouched down and unzipped the large blue tent.

He held the flap open, looking at the gorgeous brunette keenly. "Well... after you love."

Rory shook her head, smiling at Finn before stepping into the tent. She laughed loudly at the sight that greeted her. In the centre of the tent was food, lots and lots of food. From large bags of potato chips, mallomars, smores and even a fruit tray. There were also cans of soda, and numerous bottles of alcohol. Surrounding the circle of food were pillows varying in sizes. And in each corner of the tent was one dimly lit kerosene lamp.

"Impressive," Rory nodded approvingly, she sat down on the tent floor. She leaned against the nest of pillows behind her.

"Steph wasn't the only one to go to the store today. Only difference was that I had my best friends with me, American Express and Master Card."

Rory chuckled, "You know what would make this moment _perfect_?" she eyed him hopefully, her sapphire eyes twinkling.

"Say no more love," he rushed to the centre of the tent to the circle of the food.

Rory closed her eyes as she waited for Finn._ What comfortable pillows... _

The heavenly scent of the elixir of life caused her eyes to open quickly. Finn sat in front of her; his grin lopsided as he held in one hand a bottle of beer and in the other, a thermos of what Rory guessed was coffee.

She took the thermos eagerly. "Thank you," she whispered, before drowning herself into the steaming hot liquid. "You know, this is very thoughtful of you Finn."

Finn shrugged, leaning against the pillows beside her. "What can I say? I'm just a very thoughtful person."

"So, who's your favourite girl?"

Finn choked on his Heineken. "Pardon me?"

"You said Stephanie was your _second _favourite girl... who's your first?" Rory inquired innocently, her eyes meeting his.

Finn took several moments before recovering from her question. He took another long gulp of his drink and met her eyes again, only this time, he was much more confident. "You'll know soon, love."

Rory nodded, satisfied with his answer. She looked around the tent before opening her mouth to talk. "So, what do you want to do? We have a pretty long wait, knowing Steph and Colin they're probably arguing about which store to go to."

Finn set his beer aside. "Let's just talk."

"Talk?" Rory had now finished the coffee, "I like to talk."

Finn chuckled and nodded, "That's one thing we have in common."

--

_**AN: **Ta-da! A fairly decent sized chapter for you wonderful people. Thank you to the lovely people who reviewed this story… you guys just absolutely rock! Please continue to do so… _

_Oh, and for the people wondering about the status of Logan and Rory... all will be explained in the next chapter! Thank you guys again!_


	3. Finn's Love Shack

**Camping Trip – Chapter Three**

**_Disclaimer: I own nothing. _**

"Come on now... I'm waiting."

Rory crossed her arms around her chest, looking the other way. "I'm not drinking that," she replied vehemently.

Finn grinned boyishly, "Just one shot."

"I can't hold my alcohol. I'm going to be dizzy just drinking that," Rory said, eyeing the shot glass hesitantly.

"One won't kill you," Finn laughed, holding the vodka near her face tantalizingly.

"Finn," Rory half-whined, "I know what you're doing..."

"Oh?"

"You're trying to get me drunk," she said matter of factly.

Finn rolled his eyes, biting back a smile. Instead, he swallowed the vodka he meant to give her. After the bitter alcohol made its way past his throat, he leaned against three pillows that he had stacked together and grabbed a slice of kiwi. He chewed thoughtfully before uttering another word.

"So... tell me about yourself," he grinned at her before taking another slice of fruit.

"Well," Rory started, "What do you want to know?"

Finn shrugged, "Let's start with the basics, shall we?"

"Alright," Rory agreed, "But you have to answer them too."

Finn nodded in agreement. "Easy questions first alright?"

"Okay."

"Full name."

"Lorelai Leigh Gilmore the third."

Finn's eyebrow raised, "Finley Hamilton Morgan the third."

Rory chuckled, chewing on her Reese's bite thoughtfully trying to think of another question. "How many relationships have you been in?"

"Serious relationships?"

Rory nodded.

"Just one," he answered truthfully, "When I was sixteen... her name was Abigail _something_."

"Abigail something? If the relationship was so serious then you should know her last name."

"I do... well _did_. It was a long time ago," he laughed sheepishly.

"What happened?"

"I moved to America," he said, his voice had now become soft.

"Did you love her?"

"We were sixteen," Finn answered, "I didn't know what love was back then."

She nodded understandingly.

"So, how about you then?"

"Two. Dean and Jess..."

"What happened?"

"Dean - _well _we met when we were was sixteen and he was the perfect boyfriend. He was trustworthy and _safe_. Then there was Jess... Luke's nephew. He was the complete opposite of what Dean was. Jess was this rebel that I was weirdly attracted to him... but one day, he just left," she explained.

"Both are bloody stupid if you ask me," Finn replied, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Rory laughed, "I'm over them."

"I'm glad... and if you don't mind me asking love, what's going on with you and my best mate?"

"Colin and I? Well… don't tell anybody but we're madly in love and are thinking of eloping next week."

"Am I invited?"

"Maybe."

"Will there be cake? I love cake."

Rory scoffed, "You silly man! Of course."

"Now honestly, you and Colin make a lovely image in any sane person's mind… but I'm talking about the other one. Logan Huntzberger… does that name ring a bell?"

"A tiny one," Rory blushed at his question, "Nothing serious."

"But I assume you want it to be."

"Your assumption is correct, yes," she blushed even more at her revelation, "But that doesn't mean it's going to happen. Logan Huntzberger doesn't commit."

Finn attempted a smile, only to have it come out lopsided. "Well that may be true... but on the other hand, it may not."

"Really?" her smiled widened hopefully.

Finn took note of this and nodded, inwardly sighing. "He's never brought a girl to one of our adventure's before. He doesn't want Colin and I to get attached to one of his girls... but he has no problem introducing you to us so that's got to mean something, right?"

"I guess... but I'm not getting my hopes up," she said, picking at her half eaten mallomar.

Finn shot her a small smile before bringing his drink up to his lips, all the while thinking, _you shouldn't love... you really shouldn't. _It was hard for him to swallow his beer as thoughts filled his mind. He knew Logan Huntzberger well, and he knew that it would take more then just _one _girl to change his playboy ways. Finn looked at the brunette from the corner of his eyes and sighed into his drink... he couldn't bring it to himself to tell her the truth about his best mate. His feelings for her blinded his way of thinking and he silently cursed her for that. Besides, he refused to be the one that would hurt her.

"So how did you, Colin and Logan meet?" she suddenly asked.

"High school. I met Logan midway sophomore year and Colin came a year later. Been inseparable ever since."

"That fact is quite obvious. We never see one without the other two close behind."

"Hey! Those two dipsticks are my brothers."

"Yes, you three are like triplets conjoined at the hip."

Finn laughed, "But even you have to admit that I am the most handsome."

Her head shook repeatedly as her shoulders shook from laughter, "I will do no such thing."

"But doll... it's quite true. You have yet to see Colin when he's just woken up. The most disgusting image imaginable."

"Well then, my most sincere condolences to Stephanie."

"To _Stephanie_? I share a dorm room with the bloke!"

They both laughed as they continued to share stories. Both took turns answering each other's questions, with Finn sometimes cutting in with a humorous story from time to time. Rory grasped a newly opened bottle of beer and without even a second thought; she swallowed a fair bit before realizing her need for another bottle.

-

"Alright, I got one," Finn announced, his side's aching from laughing.

"Take the stage, Mr. Morgan," Rory threw her arms up for emphasis, although she didn't mean to.

"Are you drunk doll?" he looked at her suspiciously, his eyes danced with mirth.

"No, not drunk…" she trailed off, slapping his arm lightly, "Just tipsy. I blame you."

"Me?" the Australian exclaimed, "I'm completely innocent."

"You… you… you," she pointed at his chest with her index finger, "You're just so _persuasive_."

"I'm not going to argue with you," he replied, puffing out his chest confidently.

Rory laughed, "So what was the story you were going to tell me?"

"Oh yes, before you so _rudely _interrupted me…" he cleared his throat.

"I did _not-_"

"Do you want to hear my story or not?"

Rory closed her mouth and nodded bashfully.

He smiled wryly, "Actually love, never mind. It won't beat the story of you getting hit by a deer…" he said thoughtfully.

"Ah, one of my most darkest moments. Because of that deer, Mr. Medina wouldn't let me take this test that I had studied so hard for," she shook her head at the dreadful memory.

"Howd'ya take it?"

"Not very well, I'm afraid," she pouted slightly, "I blew up Paris and this guy named Tristan."

Finn had not heard her answer as his eyes were fixed solely on her slightly parted pink lips. His stomach flipped and he worked hard to keep a steady breathing rhythm.

"I'm sorry love, I didn't quite catch that," he broke away from his trance-like state.

"Never mind," she laughed off the feeling in her stomach. She had caught him staring and it made her nervous.

Finn shifted a little under the pillows and found himself closer to where Rory sat cross-legged. Even with the dim lighting, he could see her anxiety-ridden blue eyes. He fought a losing battle with himself as he found himself inching closer to where she sat. The light from behind her only seemed to intensify her beauty and her angelic like features. Finn couldn't help but eye her tasty looking lips appreciatively, wanting so desperately to kiss her.

As he was thinking such thoughts, his body had subconsciously moved even closer to Rory Gilmore. They now sat opposite each other, both sitting cross-legged with the same look on their faces.

Their faces were now millimetres away from one another and Finn inwardly danced in anticipation. Gently, he brought his hand up to caress her cheek; he tilted her head carefully to better prepare her to the upcoming kiss. Licking his lips, he decided to end the agony and crushed his lips onto hers.

The intensity of the kiss took her by surprise. She staggered back and was met by pillows. To her relief, her sudden fall did not separate their lips… he was now hovering above her and his hands were positioned at either side of her body for support. Her right hand found its way into his dark locks while her left was resting on his waist, her thumb caressing his belt buckle.

The now passionate kiss was slowly escalating into something more. Finn's tongue outlined her bottom lip teasingly, awaiting entrance. Rory found herself moaning from this gesture and greedily opened her mouth, welcoming his tongue with her own.

"_Morgan! Ace… where the hell are you guys?"_

Rory jumped out of the kiss and pushed Finn away. She sat up and hurriedly fixed her brown hair… she could hear footsteps from outside. They only had mere seconds before somebody would come in.

"Did… did that just happen?"

Finn ran a hand over his now messy hair, he sighed and reluctantly nodded. "'Fraid so."

Rory bit her swollen bottom lip, preventing it from quivering. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.

"Don't be," Finn attempted an apologetic smile, cursing inwardly.

"It must have been all that beer," she fought for an excuse.

Finn nodded curtly before tearing his eyes away from her. He could see three figures standing outside. The flap opened and Logan popped his head inside.

"There you are!"

Logan stepped inside, followed by Stephanie and Colin.

"Ooh," Stephanie cooed, looking around the dimly lit tent, "You should have made a sign that said, _Finn's love shack… female's only _and posted it outside. You want me to make one for you? I have some glitter in my purse."

Colin also looked around and glanced at Rory briefly, then his eyes settled to Finn. It didn't take a smart man to know what had gone on. "You dog," he teased.

"Oh piss off, you whacker," Finn muttered before crawling out of the tent.

Colin turned to Stephanie who shrugged curiously. She signalled that they should follow their friend and Colin hesitantly agreed.

Logan and Rory were now the only ones left. Rory's head was down and she refused to meet his questioning eyes.

"So, did you have fun?" his voice oozed with sarcasm.

Rory found enough courage to meet his eyes and nodded stiffly. "Finn's an easy guy to talk to," she replied.

"_Just _to talk to?"

"How was grocery shopping?"

"Fine but unlike here, no kissing happened to _or _from the grocery store."

"Pity. I'd bet Stephanie would have loved to see you and Colin kiss," Rory quipped.

"So you _did_ kiss Finn?"

"What if I did?" she challenged Logan using just her eyes.

"You're not supposed to!"

"And why not? It's not like we're in an exclusive relationship!"

Logan paused, "You're right Ace, you're absolutely right… go kiss Finn… hell, go kiss Colin for all I care. As for me, I'm going to go and give Jasmine a call… or maybe Susie, I'm feeling a little feisty tonight."

"Go ahead," she yelled, biting back tears as she exited the tent.

She stepped out of the tent only to be met by three pairs of inquiring eyes. Finn, Colin and Stephanie were all seated on the patio table, their eyes glued to her. Rory tensed at this, feeling extremely uncomfortable under their fixed stares. From behind her, she heard Logan step out of the tent and could feel his eyes on her back. Seconds later, she felt Logan's presence… he was now standing behind her.

A warm, almost comforting hand met her tense shoulder. "Rory… I'm sorry," he whispered close to her ear.

Rory promptly turned around, meeting his apologetic eyes with her apprehensive pair. She nodded wordlessly.

Logan smiled and brought her close to him, bringing her into a tight embrace. He buried his face deep within her vanilla scented hair before bringing his head up. Immediately, his eyes found the face of his best friend, his eyes silently sending him a message.

Finn was the first to break their eye contact. He had understood clearly. Now, he had to find ways to avoid Rory Gilmore as much as possible… he had to, for his best mate had told him so just a few seconds before.

--

_I apologize for the extremely long wait… I sort of just winged this chapter and it took me forever to even begin to write. _

_**Problem Child1: **First off, let me begin to tell you how wonderful you are! I'm glad the last chapter made you laugh; it was such a giggle to write. And yes, I agree with you… I would not want to reach into Colin's pants either. Finn yes (they'd probably stay in there for a bit longer… mwahaha) but Colin's? No, no and no. I hate camping too… I went once and refused to go back. _

_**ReeseAnn: **There's some smooching for you! I hope you like it… and thank you for your reviews. _

_**ElvenPrincess01: **Wow… your review made me smile. Thanks a bunch! _

_**ETB4670: **I love them together also, and Finn being an Aussie is a big reason. Who can resist a man with an accent? _

_**Smile1: **Whenever I see that you've reviewed to one of my chapters, it makes me grin like no other. You're so sweet, but you give wonderful criticism also. Thank you for that and I'm glad you're enjoying this story! Endless possibilities for sure! _

_As for my other reviewers, **THANK** **YOU** **SO** **MUCH**… you guys are just the best! I love you, I love you, I love you, I love you, I love youuu… (That Natasha Beddingfield song is on). _


	4. Colin, Chef Extraordinaire

_**Camping Trip – Chapter Four**_

**Disclaimer: As sad as this is to say… I own absolutely nothing. I mean, how could I? I only have 15 dollars in my bank account. **

"Well… that was certainly interesting," Stephanie muttered to Colin, referring to the scene a few moments ago.

Colin, who a few minutes ago had been dubbed '_the cook', _nodded and flipped the burger patties sizzling on the barbecue. "I personally loved it," he grinned at her.

"Of course _you _would," Stephanie glared, "You're just sick like that."

"No," Colin argued, "I like drama when it doesn't involve yours truly."

Stephanie tore her eyes away from the barbecuing fiend and looked out into the backyard. She inwardly sighed as she noticed Finn sitting by himself on the stairs, a bottle of Absolut beside him and clutching a shot glass firmly. Shaking her head, she turned her attention back to Colin.

"Go talk to him," she pushed him slightly.

"What? No!" Colin hissed, glancing at Finn briefly.

"Why not? Finn's bummed and if you don't stop him soon, we're going to have to drag his ass to the emergency room _again_. Do you want a repeat of Logan's birthday last year?"

"He's only half done, when he's three quarters done just holler. You know where I am."

"He's your friend!" Stephanie exclaimed incredulously.

"Yours too," Colin bit back.

"Why don't you want to talk to him?"

"What's there to talk about? He and Rory kissed, he realized what a big mistake that was and now he's contemplating about whether or not he should apologize or leave it as is. Let him _contemplate_ Steph."

"Are you as clueless as I think you are or is it just an act?"

Colin shrugged, flipping another patty. "A little bit of both actually," he murmured.

"He obviously has feelings for Rory," Stephanie said, her eyes watching the Australian.

Colin turned around to face the blonde, grasping the tongs tightly in his right hand. He glanced at her as though she had grown a second head and threw his head back with laughter.

"Are you serious? Finn liking Rory? Finn! _Our_ Finn?" he continued to laugh as pointed the scorching hot tongs in front of her, the laughter then vanished and he resumed flipping the burgers. "Absolutely impossible… Finn doesn't even remember her name half the time and only learned it the morning of this trip, remember?"

"I think that was just an act," she replied sceptically.

"Think all you want, but I know Finn and I can honestly say that I don't think he likes her. Maybe he just felt lonely," with another shrug Colin started to lay the buns on the grill to toast them.

"You know, you're pretty good at flipping burgers," Stephanie observed, crossing her arms across her chest. "I'd bet daddy Worthington would absolutely _love_ to hear that about his only son, sole _heir _of the Worthington enterprise."

Stephanie smirked at Colin's tense shoulders.

"Okay, what do you want me to do?" he sighed dejectedly.

Stephanie tore the tongs from his firm grip and pushed Colin lightly to the direction of their friend. "Talk to him! He looks miserable… I'll handle the barbecue for now."

"But I'm not good at heart to heart's. It's more Logan's style… or maybe even Robert, possibly… well perhaps… people never cease to surprise, right?"

Stephanie didn't respond but signalled for him to go to Finn. Colin cursed inwardly and glared at her before making his way to where Finn sat. He took a seat beside Finn and grabbed his full shot glass. In one swift motion, Colin emptied the contents of the cup into his mouth and swallowed.

"Hey buddy!" Colin greeted cheerfully, patting Finn on the back.

Finn watched him wearily, taking back his shot glass. "What are you on, mate?"

"Nothing but love, man… nothing but love," he grinned.

Finn mumbled a string of incoherent words.

"What's bugging you?"

Finn shrugged in response before refilling his cup. Colin inhaled deeply, preparing himself for what he was about to do. Silently sending a prayer to anyone who would listen, Colin closed his eyes and blindly reached for the bottle of vodka. Grasping the bottle, he stood quickly and ran to where Stephanie stood.

"What did you do?" Stephanie asked, she had just witnessed the scene.

"I – I don't know," Colin clutched his stomach and was now hunched over, his sides hurting.

"You took Finn's alcohol…" Stephanie's eyes widened, "Do you remember the last time you did that?"

"No," Colin answered.

"That's because you've never done it! You and Logan concluded that it would be extremely dangerous if you tried to deprive him of the one and only thing he lives for," Stephanie replied calmly, "I don't mean to scare you but he's headed this way."

Colin cursed under his breath and turned around, preparing himself.

"My friend," Colin greeted, hiding the bottle behind him.

"Colin," Finn stated, his voice even and steady, "You took my drink mate. Now I'm sure it was a mistake so I'm willing to forgive you if you just hand it over."

"Um – no," Colin replied uncertainly.

"What? I think my hearing's a little blotchy because I swear I just heard you say no."

"You – heard right."

"Colin…" Finn trailed off, "Are you denying me of alcohol?"

Colin shifted from one foot to another, slowly but surely taking position behind Stephanie. "It's not that… but don't you think you've had enough for today?"

"Yeah Finn… there's no point in drowning your sorrows with a bottle of vodka," Stephanie added wearily.

"What _ever_ do you mean Steph? I don't know what you're talking about," Finn denied, cautiously nearing where Colin stood.

"There's no more!" Colin announced after drinking the remaining vodka, "I just wanted to get you another bottle."

Finn eyed him suspiciously; he swayed a bit but managed to stay on his feet. "Well, I'm waiting," the alcohol was slowly taking its effect as his sentence slurred.

"There's no more," Stephanie answered for Colin, "We have a few coolers but that's it," she lied.

"Nonsense! There's more back in the tent… lemme go and –"

"There's no more… I drank it all," Colin ran in front of Finn, preventing him from making his way over to the blue tent.

"You mean – you drank all _my_ alcohol?" Finn exclaimed, his hands being thrown in the air for emphasis. "Why – you little – little…"

"What's going on here?"

All three looked up at the voice and Finn frowned even more. Logan stood in the doorway holding Rory's hand. Both looked slightly dishevelled and Rory's face was pink. Finn scowled at this and pushed past Colin, he staggered down the steps and back into the tent.

"What's up with him?" Rory asked, making her way to Stephanie and Colin, Logan trailing behind her.

"He's had a little too much to drink," Stephanie sighed.

"Well that's certainly a surprise," Logan remarked sarcastically.

"And he went in there to get more. He's not drinking to have a good time like he usually does Huntzberger," Stephanie told him, enraged that no one seemed to care about Finn's well being.

"It's what Finn does. When he's happy, he drinks. When he's pissed, he drinks. When he's drunk, he drinks. That's Finn."

Stephanie glared at the blonde before attacking him with the tongs. Rory watched the pair before letting her eyes wander to the tent. Biting her lip, she tore her eyes away from where Finn was and focused all her attention to Stephanie and Logan.

"Shouldn't someone go and see if he's okay?" Rory suggested.

"Not it," Colin called, "I already tried and if it weren't for you two, I'd probably be six feet under."

Rory looked at the other two expectantly but noticed that neither paid any attention to her question. Logan was busily attempting to fend Stephanie away with a twig he had found on the floor.

Sighing helplessly, she decided to volunteer. "I'll do it," she replied, making her way down the steps, "He won't kill me."

Hesitantly, Rory opened the flap and crawled in. She stopped at the entrance and found Finn sprawled across the tent, with several pillows underneath him. She caught sight of the empty bottles wearily and crawled near the half-conscious Aussie. Rory sat cross-legged near his sprawled body and watched his steady breathing, not quite sure what to say.

"Finn?" she muttered, reluctantly taking the beer away from his grasp.

"What the – Colin! Leave me alone or I'll kill ya," Finn muttered, his eyes remained shut.

"It's Rory."

Finn lifted a hand and then dropped it just as quickly. He struggled to open one eye, "What – go away," he murmured, grabbing a pillow from underneath his body and placing it on top of his face.

"Are you okay? Do you need anything?" Rory attempted.

Rory watched Finn writhe on the floor, moaning gently.

"My bloody head," he moaned, pressing the pillow on his face forcefully to drown out his groans.

Sighing, Rory plucked a pillow from underneath him and placed it on her crossed legs. "Lay your head here," she whispered softly, helping the drunken man manoeuvre himself so he could lay his throbbing head on her lap.

Groaning once more, Finn buried his head on the pillow in her lap, mumbling a string of inaudible words. Rory doubted that the words were even in English.

"That's what you get for drinking too much Morgan," She whispered, laughing slightly, "Hopefully, you'll learn next time."

After a long pause, Finn removed his face from the pillow and moved slightly so that his face now met the ceiling. Following what looked like a struggle, Finn opened his eyes to meet her face.

"I never learn from my mistakes," he whispered.

"Not even one?" she whispered back in response.

Finn shook his head but later groaned from the pounding, "Not even one," he mumbled, his eyes drowsily shutting.

Rory closed her eyes also, shrill yelling could be heard outside. Stephanie's constant apologies and screams, Colin's outraged cries of _fire, fire, fire_ and Logan's cackling laughter. Something was happening outside but Rory didn't bother moving… she was too comfortable.

Finn's deep mumbling brought her back to reality, she curiously looked down at her lap, her mind attempting to piece together what Finn was saying.

Her eyebrows furrowed, she had finally pieced together his jumbled words but she felt even more confused.

"_I shouldn't have met you..."_

And suddenly, just like that… Finn drifted off to a peaceful sleep leaving Rory by herself to contemplate his stinging words.

--

_**AN: **Hello my lovelies! It's a hot and muggy Sunday afternoon and I was positively bored out of my mind so I decided to update. I know it wasn't much of a chapter… I just basically focused on Finn and his attempt to solve his problem but I felt that this chapter was a must. And yeah, poor Finn-y, I know it seems like he always gets the nasty apple but fear not, all will be good… promise. _

_I have no time to type out individual thank you's (a barbecue's going on downstairs and my friends are wondering where I am… I've been gone for about an hour… mwahaha or two). So… thank you guys for the kind words and encouragement… you all make me so, so, so happy. _

_P.S. This will be a PDLD eventually… like you guys didn't guess already. Clever ducklings! ;) _


	5. Party Hardy

**Camping Trip – _Chapter Five_**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing…**

The following morning had been an unusual one to say the least.

Following the weird occurrence in the tent, Rory had gotten Colin's help to lift Finn inside the cabin and back to his room where he locked himself in the rest of the night. She brushed away the knowing question situated deep within her head and swallowed away the feeling in her stomach.

Loud voices startled Rory from her deep sleep. Rubbing the exhaustion from her eyes, she sat up and immediately turned her head to the side. Bewilderment crossed her face as she found the spot next to her empty.

Quickly grabbing her gray Yale sweatshirt, she walked out of the room and followed the loud voices.

"Hey! You're finally up," Stephanie greeted Rory with a cup of coffee.

"Thanks," Rory smiled, taking a sip of the coffee. She cringed at the awful taste but nonetheless, still swallowed. "Who made this?"

"I did," Stephanie raised her hand slightly, "It's great, isn't it? Too bad Colin's allergic to caffeine and Logan opted for orange juice instead. I really wanted them to taste this… but there's always Finn."

"He hasn't come out of his room yet?" Rory questioned, taking a seat next to Logan.

Logan shook his head, drinking his orange juice slowly.

"You must really like that juice, huh?" Colin smirked.

"I'm savoring it, you ass."

"And _why_ are you savoring Tropicana orange juice when Colin bought 3 jugs for the trip?" Rory asked, taking another gulp of the god-awful coffee.

"Because once he finishes, Stephanie's going to pour him a cup of her delicious coffee."

"Ah," Rory replied, "It's not bad coffee."

"This coming from a coffee addict? You'll drink anything as long as you get your caffeine fix."

Colin stood from his stool, taking a sidelong glance at Stephanie who was busily making another pot of coffee. "Unfortunately, I am unable to taste Stephanie's marvelous creation due to my allergy," he sighed dramatically.

"Fuck off," Logan muttered into his juice.

"You're just pissed that you didn't come up with the excuse first Huntz."

"What excuse?"

All heads turned at the sound of the Australian's voice. Rory turned her head away from him and turned her attention to the sliding door, taking note of the rainy and cloudy weather.

"Finn my man, you finally come out of seclusion!" Colin was the first to greet the hung over Aussie.

"Thought you'd never show your sexy ass to us this weekend," Stephanie welcomed him with a steaming cup of coffee.

Finn only smiled in reply before taking a hefty gulp of coffee. "What in the fuck's sake is this?" he coughed.

"It's coffee Finn," Stephanie answered calmly, "All that alcohol affecting your sense of taste?"

"That must be it doll," Finn muttered before surprising Rory by taking a seat next to her.

"So," Stephanie joined the group, "What are we doing today?"

"How about we go fishing?"

"Fishing?" Logan asked wearily.

"On my father's brand new yacht over at the Stanford Pier… it's only a two hour drive."

"I doubt we'll get any fishing done," Stephanie scoffed.

"Actually," Finn interrupted, "If you guys don't mind… I umm… actually invited a couple of people over."

"A couple?" Logan asked skeptically.

Finn nodded, glancing at Rory's reaction briefly before meeting Logan's eyes. "You heard me mate, a couple."

"Who?"

Finn shrugged, "Just Robert and Rosemary."

"You know Robert's going to invite all of LDB," Logan argued, shaking his head slowly.

"I know that mate… that'll make it even more fun," Finn grinned lazily.

"You couldn't even ask me? It is my cabin after all…" Logan replied, his eyes slightly ablaze.

"Why would I? It's not like you cared before… why do you care now?" Finn sarcastically questioned.

"Because I want to go on Colin's dads yacht and I don't trust you here by yourself."

"Come on Pa… I won't trash the place _too _badly," Finn said.

Logan stood from his seat abruptly, accidentally knocking the wooden chair down. "You're not trashing the place at all Finn… my dad's still pissed about the Milan incident."

"The Milan incident?" Rory spoke for the first time.

"When Finn here trashed our suite at the hotel, we got kicked out and they charged my dad who was paying for it thousands and thousands of dollars for all of the damages."

"That was ages ago, mate… I've learned my lesson."

"That was two weeks ago Finn," Stephanie mumbled.

"So you're all ganging up on me now? Well bugger… and here I thought you guys were my best friends," Finn loudly exclaimed before exiting the kitchen quickly.

"That was certainly uneventful. Who knew I'd see the day when Logan actually stood up to Finn and said _no _to one of Finn's surprise parties," Colin smirked.

Rory felt the tension floating through the room and sighed. Friendships were going to be tested this weekend.

"You shouldn't have done that Logan," Rory whispered.

"Why not? Robert and the rest of the guys are going to fucking trash this place," Logan replied adamantly.

"It's not like you're going to clean up after the mess," Rory argued.

"What?"

"You're telling me that you, Logan Huntzberger, are going to go down on your hands and knees and pick up empty beer bottles and wipe down tables?"

"What are you trying to say Rory?"

Stephanie and Colin looked on with wide eyes before sneaking glances at each other.

"Just let Finn have this party… let him have fun."

"Why are you defending him?"

"Because he's my friend – and yours too!"

"He's your friend huh?" Logan rolled his eyes.

Rory nodded, glaring at the blonde menacingly. "Yes, he is."

"Just a friend? Are you positive it isn't more?"

Stephanie let out an inaudibly squeak, her eyes shone with excitement at the drama unfolding right before her eyes.

"Grow up Logan! Yes, I'm 100 percent positive. I'm with _you_, only _you _and not anybody else. Although right now, I'm beginning to seriously rethink that. Have fun at the yacht, count me out," Rory replied, brushing past Logan and Colin and out of the kitchen.

--

Finally finished chapter five! So long overdue…

I have nothing to say but THANK YOU to you guys. You guys are so damn amazing! Thank you again… D


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